Abstract
Franchthi Cave, a prehistoric site in southern Greece, became the target of archaeological excavation in the 1960s and 1970s. For the last five decades, archaeologists have been analyzing the excavated material and piecing together what life was like for the cave's prehistoric inhabitants. In this article, I turn away from the archaeological analyses and interpretations. I focus, instead, on the people who live in the nearby fishing village of Kilada and have been in constant visual, conceptual, and/or physical interaction with the cave. I explore the local people's experiences and understandings of the cave, discuss their perspectives on the archaeologists who excavated it, and tell the story of the attempts we archaeologists have made (and un-made) to connect with the local community. I have deliberately chosen a personal and somewhat poetic writing style to best convey my own engagement with the people of Kilada as well as my personal growth as a public archaeologist.
